The Harlem Renaissance was at the center of an African-American poltical, social and artistic movement that occurred in the 1920’s. After WWI, life was changing in the 1920s’, not only for whites but for blacks as well. The Harlem Renaissance was a result of blacks adapting to city life and forming their own cultural style. Many well-known blacks arose at this time in many different fields, such as literature with Charles Chestnut, poetry with Langston Hughes, songwriter Bob Cole, and art with William H. Johnson., as well as many others. The Harlem Renaissance was affected more by the social, political and economic situation than it affected the situation itself. This movement of creating a unique social culture for blacks can be traced to the effects of WWI and cultural leaders such as W.E.B. Dubois. Politically, blacks were losing their representation, with Republicans long ago showing that blacks would no longer be their main concern, although at this time many blacks still assosciated with Republicans. Economically, the job oppurtunities created by WWI and the industrial build-up of the North led to a mass migration North. The Harlem Renaissance was a result of the social, political and economic conditions.
What were the events and who were the individuals that helped to start the Renaissance?:
The following events and individuals are some of what contributed to the start of the Harlem Renaissance- WWI- World War One changed many people's outlook on life, they began to think more freely. WWI also created new economic oppurtunitites as the need for goods increased and thus more blacks migrated to the industrious north.
W.E.B. Du Bois- A major black leader and very influential on the start of The Harlem Renaissance. Du Bois created the NAACP(National Assosciation for the Advancement of Colored Peoples) which was very important for blacks and still is today. Du Bois stressed black self-determination and was upset at the lack of respects for blacks in regards to the Treaty of Versailles. Du Bois helped to shape a new type of African-American, and in doing so became very important to the origins of the Harlem Renaissance.
Migration- A large number of blacks began to migrate North. This was due to many reasons, such as less racism and more jobs in the North. The large influx of blacks began to find themselves and the cultural movement was something the assosciated themselves with. NAACP-
“The NAACP helped create the Harlem Renaissance in 1914, by offering and award. The award, called the Spingarn Medal, honored an African American who achieved success in religion, science, philosophy or business. In 1924, the NAACP offered the first Spingarn medals for fine arts. The medals encouraged African Americans to use their cultural background to create the art.”(Harlem Renaissance Artists, 6)
The Harlem Renaissance
What was The Harlem Renaissance?:
The Harlem Renaissance was at the center of an African-American poltical, social and artistic movement that occurred in the 1920’s. After WWI, life was changing in the 1920s’, not only for whites but for blacks as well. The Harlem Renaissance was a result of blacks adapting to city life and forming their own cultural style. Many well-known blacks arose at this time in many different fields, such as literature with Charles Chestnut, poetry with Langston Hughes, songwriter Bob Cole, and art with William H. Johnson., as well as many others. The Harlem Renaissance was affected more by the social, political and economic situation than it affected the situation itself. This movement of creating a unique social culture for blacks can be traced to the effects of WWI and cultural leaders such as W.E.B. Dubois. Politically, blacks were losing their representation, with Republicans long ago showing that blacks would no longer be their main concern, although at this time many blacks still assosciated with Republicans. Economically, the job oppurtunities created by WWI and the industrial build-up of the North led to a mass migration North. The Harlem Renaissance was a result of the social, political and economic conditions.
What were the events and who were the individuals that helped to start the Renaissance?:
The following events and individuals are some of what contributed to the start of the Harlem Renaissance-
WWI- World War One changed many people's outlook on life, they began to think more freely. WWI also created new economic oppurtunitites as the need for goods increased and thus more blacks migrated to the industrious north.
W.E.B. Du Bois- A major black leader and very influential on the start of The Harlem Renaissance. Du Bois created the NAACP(National Assosciation for the Advancement of Colored Peoples) which was very important for blacks and still is today. Du Bois stressed black self-determination and was upset at the lack of respects for blacks in regards to the Treaty of Versailles. Du Bois helped to shape a new type of African-American, and in doing so became very important to the origins of the Harlem Renaissance.
Migration- A large number of blacks began to migrate North. This was due to many reasons, such as less racism and more jobs in the North. The large influx of blacks began to find themselves and the cultural movement was something the assosciated themselves with.
NAACP-
“The NAACP helped create the Harlem Renaissance in 1914, by offering and award. The award, called the Spingarn Medal, honored an African American who achieved success in religion, science, philosophy or business. In 1924, the NAACP offered the first Spingarn medals for fine arts. The medals encouraged African Americans to use their cultural background to create the art.”(Harlem Renaissance Artists, 6)
The Harlem Renaissance Art Gallery
Famous Harlem Renaisance Artists:
<Art in the 1920's/ Home Page
Works Cited
Hardy, P. Stephen, and Sheila Jackson Hardy, et al. Extraordinary People of the Harlem Renaissance. New York : Children’s Press, 2000.
Jordan, Denise. Harlem Renaissance Artists. Chicago : Heinemann, 2003.
Schaefer, Adam R. The Harlem Renaissance. Chicago: Heinemann, 2003.
Motley, Archibald. The Jockey Club . 1929. 6 March 2008 http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http:www.areaofdesign.com/americanicons/motley/JockeyClub.jpg
Haydin, Palmer. Midsummer Night in Harlem . 1938. 7 March 2008
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/aaworld/arts/hayden.html
Pippin, Horace. The End of the War: Starting Home. 1930. 7 March 2008 http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/counting_on_art/bio_pippin.shtm
Douglas, Aaron. Sahdji. 1925. 7 March 2008
www.artlex.com/ArtLex/a/african_american_4.html
Archibald J. Motley. 7 March 2008
http://www.areaofdesign.com/americanicons/motley.htm
Horace Pippin. 8 March 2008
http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/counting_on_art/bio_pippin.shtm
Palmer Hayden. 8 March 2008
http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/exploring/harlem/images/faces/hayden_150.jpg
Aaron Douglas. 8 March 2008
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http:cache.eb.com/eb/image
Pippin, Horace. Domino Players . 1943. 8 March 2008
http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/counting_on_art/img/img_pippin_domino_players_lg.jpg
Motley, Archibald. Nightlife The Jockey Club . 1943. 8 March 2008
http://www.artic.edu/artaccess/AA_AfAm/pages/AfAm_6.shtml
Haydin, Palmer. Where’d You Get Them High Top Shoes?. 1944. 8 March 2008
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/aaworld/arts/hayden.html
Douglas, Aaron. Song of Towers. 1934. 8 March 2008
http://www.si.umich.edu/chico/Harlem/text/adouglas_slide.html